Real Madrid beat Emporio Armani 85-78; Secure the top spot in group C- Euroleague Recap
Real Madrid did not disappoint the 11,000 capacity crowd that had gathered at Madrid Caja Magica to support their home team as they overcame Emporio Armani in their second outing of Euroleague regular season 2011. In doing so,
Real have now topped the group C whereas Armani are at the bottom with 2 losses.
Although, they managed to secure the game, Real did not have it easy on the night. Jaycee Carroll led the winning team with 21 points knocking down 4 for 4 from three point range. Rudy Fernandez, the Dallas Mavericks star, added
another 17 whereas Sergio Llull and Marty Pocius also made valuable contributions chipping in with 13 and 11 points respectively.
Drew Nicholas was the most outstanding player from the losing side ending with game-high 24 points including 7 for 8 from free throw line and 3 for 7 from three point range. Malik Hairston (18) and Danilo Gallinari (12) were the
other two players who managed to end with scores in double figures for Emporio.
A disappointed Gallinari commented on the defeat after the game;
"We have to stay concentrated during the 40 minutes and be aggressive during all the game. We have to work on that and on managing the leads so what happened tonight doesn't repeat. We are in the toughest group of the regular season
and it shows."
Two consecutive free throws by Ioannis Bourousis in the first minute of the game provided Emporio a 2-0 lead however it was answered by Mirza Begic’s trademark layup in the second minute. Madrid managed to acquire a 4 point lead
(8-4) in the first 5 minutes of the game but a quick burst from Emporio helped them in gaining the lead. By the end of the first quarter, Emporio were leading by 18-14
Real responded early in the second frame and took only two minutes to get level. Jaycee Carroll then provided his team with a 1 point lead at 26-25 courtesy of a well directed three pointer. However Emporio did not allow Real to
take charge. With one minute to go in the frame, Armani were leading by 6 points 39-33. This lead was however slashed to 3 points when Carroll again managed to find the basket from the three point range in the dying seconds of the first half.
The first half of the third quarter belonged to Drew Nicholas, who keyed a magnificent 13-7 point run including back to back three 3-pointers and 4 free throws. In doing so, he provided Emporio with a healthy lead 53-40. However
Real pulled back things quickly by scoring in quick succession to carve out a 21-7 run. A two pointer by Carroll ensured Real entered the last quarter with a one point lead 63-62.
In last quarter, Real choked Emporio to only 16 points against 22 points of their own to seal the win.
Tags: